Jehlum Post News Network/Allahabad/Jan 28, 2015/Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh Wednesday said the BJP was looking forward to formation of a popular regime in Jammu and Kashmir where President's Rule was imposed after election results threw a hung Assembly. "We are hopeful that a popular government will soon be in place in Jammu and Kashmir," Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a function. To a query as to whether his party would insist on being a part of the government in the state or whether the BJP was in talks with any of the other parties, Singh replied "this is confidential".

In the assembly elections, results for which were declared on December 23 last, the BJP had put up its best-ever electoral performance bagging 25 out of a total number of 87 seats, second only to the PDP's tally of 28. Earlier, addressing the function organised by the 101st battalion of Rapid Action Force at Phaphamau, on the outskirts of the city, Singh paid glowing tributes to paramilitary forces "who lay down their lives performing their duties in most inhospitable places". Singh said the BJP-led NDA government had commissioned setting up of 2,000 mobile towers in places where there was heavy deployment of paramilitary forces and added that poor communication facilities made it difficult for the jawans to stay in touch with their families. The minister also said that he has written to the Finance Ministry to raise the special allowance for paramilitary forces personnel in accordance with the Sixth Pay Commission. Agency